summer movies

Of Katherine Heigl's box office currency in Killers–the disappointing rom-com action flick now bombing in a theater near you–Time magazine's Richard Corliss had this to say:

[Katherine Heigl] has come close to the traditional definition of a star: someone who will get people to pay to see her in bad movies.

The article goes on to deconstruct why the derivative spy rom-com isn't performing up to expectations, which weren't particularly high to begin with. While some exploration of seasonal box office precedent–early June is the largely the time for gross-out comedies–is legitimate, Killers misses the mark for one specific reason: the filmmakers' failure to understand what constitutes successful use of the "So I married a secret agent" trope.